Texting & Driving Citation Could Raise Insurance

A $200 fine may be the least of your worries. If you get caught texting while driving you could wind up paying for something you probably hadn't thought of and it won't be a one time payment.

The word is out. If you get caught texting while driving in Sioux Falls it's going to cost you. And for some the threat seems to be working.

"I've been known to text and drive, but as of today I have stopped completely, I cannot afford to get a ticket," Augustana College student Bob Tomshack said.

"I didn't even put my phone in my hand, it's in the cup holder of my car and I don't even touch it," Augustana College student Sami Rost said.

But there may be an even bigger incentive to stop texting and driving.

"It's a moving violation, same thing as speeding tickets, same thing as a stop sign violation and it's going on your driving record as a moving violation," Farmers Insurance agent Dean Karsky said.

Karsky says on average, a texting citation could result in a five to 20 percent jump in your auto insurance. He says young drivers could be hit the hardest.

"Those who are moving out of their parent's home, going out on their own and having to set up their own insurance, if they have something like this on their driving record, it can impact their insurance rates," Karsky said.

That's something a lot of drivers didn't know.

"I don't even know what to say about it, that's just crazy. It makes sense, but I never would have thought I get a ticket for this and it wouldn't do anything to my insurance, but it makes sense that it does because it's a violation," Rost said.

"If you wouldn't have brought it up, I never would have thought of that as being on my permanent record," Tomshack said.

In South Dakota, a texting while driving citation will stay on your record for three years.